The present invention relates generally to video games and in particular to video games that simulate evolution and allow multiple persons to share player-defined content via a network.
Video games provide entertainment for a growing community of players. What makes a game entertaining typically depends on the preferences of the individual player. There are a number of different game genres, with each genre appealing to some players and not others. Examples of game genres include real-time strategy (RTS), first-person shooter games (FPS), and role-playing games (RPG). Players who prefer to play with and against many other players are typically drawn to massively multiplayer online games (MMOG).
MMOGs typically contain one virtual world in which all of the players participate. One problem with MMOGs is that a large amount of data is involved in keeping the virtual worlds up-to-date with all of the player transactions and their effects on the virtual world. This requires a large investment in computer resources such as storage space and server connections. For example, a MMOG may need to provide each player with a simultaneous connection to the server. As the number of players grows, so does the load on the server. Similarly, as the players add things such as enhanced abilities and/or items to their characters and to their worlds, the amount of storage space required to track all of the changes increases over time, and eventually becomes prohibitively expensive.
Some players prefer to play on their own computer or game console rather than compete against other people. Simulated life games provide a game experience where the player can develop a virtual world in which his or her characters can live and work. The Sims™ video game is an example of such a game. In The Sims™ video game players spend countless hours developing characters, buildings, lots and stories for their game. An entire community has been built up around the game. Dedicated fan web sites provide a forum for sharing game content. A player can develop a character and manually upload it to a web site so that other players can see it and download it into their own games. Some players even specialize in creating specific kinds of content. For example, a player might be known for creating certain kinds of houses. Player-defined content such as this makes the game more interesting, but it can be somewhat inconvenient for a player to incorporate this player-defined content into his or her game. The player must first find suitable player-defined content, which requires the player to stop playing the game to search and download content, such as by browsing web servers or other servers for content. Furthermore, once the player finds the content, the content must be downloaded and manually integrated into the player's game. This process can be both time consuming and inconvenient. Thus, what is required is a video game that enhances the player experience with interesting game play by providing an enhanced player community experience by providing a convenient system and method to allow players to create and share game content with other players.